Turning Japanese (Entrepreneurial)
Is a start-up wave sweeping Japan? Read story
Michael P. Cronin
The Love Hotel
Travel to Japen and visit a "Love Hotel," a high tech haven where people use technology to keep liaisons secret. Read story
On-the-Spot Screen Test
A short piece about a personnel agency that uses telephone interviews and role playing for hiring job applicants. Read story
Financial Education for the Masses
An overview of a service that provides companies with financial-education materials for their employees. Read story
Health-Care Initiatives
A graph displaying the findings of an Ernst Young survey that examined how companies are controlling insurance prices. Read story
Benefits: Getting Personal
A quick look at a company that offers its employees a series of seminars that range from investments to fitness. Read story
Motivation: Motivation the Old-Fashioned Way
A short article profiling an employee-recognition program set up to reward a furniture manufacturer's workforce. Read story
Open Books: You Gotta Have a Gimmick
A glimpse at how a manager illustrates his company's financial statements so employee's understand the basics. Read story
Regulation: 'Activist' Labor Department
A quick explanation of why Joseph E. Kalet's book 'Primer on FLSA Other Wage and Hour Laws' is an important resource. Read story
Administration: The Affordable HR Pro
A quick look at a CEO who established a part-time HR postion when his staff swelled to 40. Read story
Independent Contractors: Garlic for Tax Vampires
A quick look at an anonymous trucking firm's owner who ensured "independent contractor" status for contracted help. Read story
Benchmark: Real Costs of Euro-Workers
A graph comparing employer's manatory and voluntary costs in various taxes verus employee's costs in 7 European states. Read story
Workplace Violence: Defusing Dangerous Employees
A lawyer presents guidelines to balance federal requirements with employee protection to avoid lawsuits. Read story
Hiring: Try Taping Those Interviews
Two personnel experts share tips on making audio recordings of interviews and what to watch out for when taping. Read story
Family Business: Tough Love
Some thoughts on how to craft a family-employment policy, and how to order a free two-page outline on the same topic. Read story
Benchmark: Meaningful Meetings
Some data from a survey of managers asking how they run meetings, and percentages for various techniques used. Read story
Firing: A Dirty Job...
A short review of James Walsh's book 'Rightful Termination,' including purchasing information. Read story
Asking Workers What They Want
One company asked its employees what they needed to know before setting up training programs. Read story
Book Money
Tips for finding state-provided grant money to improve employees' skills Read story
Resources: Minister of Funny Talks
A quick review of an open-book management training film, starring John Cleese, and how to obtain it. Read story
How to Comply with the ADA
The Americans with Disabilities Act now applies to companies with only 15 or more employees. Read story
And Whose Syringe Might This Be?
Why one company had to institute a drug policy and how they did it. Read story
Beat the Ratio, Get a Bonus
One CEO set up an incentive plan to encourage staffers to control payroll costs. Read story
Dingdong! OSHA Calling
How to handle OSHA inspections properly. Read story
His CPA Is on the Board
One CEO invited his CPA to join his board of directors to benefit from savvy financial advice. Read story
Coping with Stress Claims
How to make yourself less vulnerable to employee lawsuits claiming disabling workplace stress. Read story
Reference Etiquette
Brief review of 'Reference Checking Handbook,' from the Society for Human Resource Management Read story
A Leg Up from the Bank
One company offers its employees a package of discounted and free banking services. Read story
Like Cookie, Like Company
With baking cookies as an analogy, financials made more sense to employees of a furniture-making company. Read story
When Contractors Aren't
'The Employer's Guide to Using Independent Contractors' details IRS guidelines to determining status of workers. Read story
No More 'Us Versus Them'
White-collar employees at auto lube shop work on the shop floor one day a month. Read story
Does California Show How?
A California cooperative helps small businesses negotiate better rates from health insurers. Read story
The Eye-Opening Employee-Benefits Work Sheet
Company shares financial data with employees by having them calculate the value of their compensation package. Read story
It's Geek-O-Rama Time!
A bioremediation company makes the most out of its industry's esoteric jargon by making it a contest. Read story
I Spy
Congress is considering a bill that would limit electronic surveillance in the workplace. Read story
Benchmark: Where Workers Learn
A graph displaying SBA data that rates the amount of formal and informal training various sized companies offer. Read story
Buying Coverage as a Team
CEO of an 18-employee company formed an alliance with other small businesses to bargain with health insurers. Read story
Plaudits for the Buddy System
Company president talks monthly with 24 employees about policy, performance, etc.--in Spanish and English. Read story
The Proof's in the Quick Quiz
Company owner assesses efficacy of management training by giving employees yearly pop quizzes. Read story
The Difference a Stake Makes
Resource for setting up an employee stock ownership plan. Read story
